C4 Center seeks transparency over RM178.3m contract award to Azam Baki’s brother

 

THE Center to Combat Corruption and Cronyism (C4 Center) has called on the government to disclose how a RM178.29 mil contract was awarded to a company chaired by the brother of former Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief commissioner Tan Sri Azam Baki, saying the case raises important questions about transparency and public procurement.

The call follows a report by The Edge Malaysia on July 20, which revealed that Integriti Padu Sdn Bhd secured a six-year contract from the Transport Ministry on May 26 to develop and operate the Road Charge and Vehicle Entry Permit (RC/VEP) system at the Malaysia-Singapore border.

According to the report, Integriti Padu’s executive chairman, Datuk Nasir Baki, owns a 34% stake in the company. His daughter, Mardhiah Nasir, is also an executive director.

Earlier this year, the company was awarded a RM40.85 mil contract by the Communications Ministry through an open tender to operate RTMKlik 3.0.

In a statement, C4 Center stressed that its concerns were not about family members of public officials engaging in legitimate business, but whether sufficient safeguards were in place to identify and manage potential conflicts of interest in government procurement.

The organisation was responding to Azam’s remarks questioning whether his relatives should be scrutinised simply because of their relationship to him, as well as Transport Minister Anthony Loke’s statement that the contract was awarded through an open tender approved by the ministry’s procurement board.

Loke also said the ministry did not know whether bidding companies were related to public officials.

Anthony Loke (Image: Bernama)

C4 Center said the issue was whether procurement authorities were made aware of Integriti Padu’s relationship to the former MACC chief during the evaluation process.

“If the relationship was not disclosed, it suggests existing procurement procedures may be inadequate to identify and manage potential corruption risks,” it said.

“Conversely, if the relationship was disclosed, the government should explain what due diligence was undertaken and why the procurement board was satisfied that the award posed no governance concerns.”

The organisation said either scenario highlighted the need for greater transparency in government procurement, particularly for high-value public contracts.

C4 Center also argued that the case underscored shortcomings in Malaysia’s procurement framework. Although the Government Procurement Act 2025 was passed by Parliament and gazetted in May this year, the Act has yet to come into force.

The organisation added that civil society groups and Members of Parliament had previously raised concerns about the legislation, including broad ministerial discretion, weaknesses in the appeals mechanism and insufficient transparency requirements.

C4 Center further reiterated its long-standing call for procurement reforms to strengthen accountability and minimise corruption risks.

It urged the government to amend the Government Procurement Act 2025 to address the weaknesses identified by civil society, including improving transparency obligations and strengthening oversight mechanisms.

The organisation also called on the government to publicly disclose the basis on which the contract was awarded to Integriti Padu, including whether the company’s relationship to Azam was declared during the procurement process and how any potential conflict of interest was assessed. ‒  Focus Malaysia